House sale bedroom query.

rio · 25 August 2006 at 3:53PM

We are hoping to do a part exchange, and have had an EA round to value our house. Although it is classed as 3 bedrooms the third bedroom is basically a nursery, you could get a cot in it and very little else. We have converted this room into a study, and as my husband works at home one day a week - it is to all intents and purposes his office.

Anyway I have received a phone call from the builders who are offering to part exchange saying that they want us to convert the room back into a bedroom to make the property more saleable. I have pointed out that my husband needs office space until the deal is completed, and also that if we took the office fixtures and fittings out we would only show the room as a store room for boxes (basically we would have to pack hubbys stuff into boxes and store it in the room as we have nowhere else for it to go). We would not pay for a cot and furniture we do not need just to help them with a sale.

When we had the office desk and bookcases put in we had them made bespoke by a local craftsman and they were not cheap. They are constructed in such a way that they are only attached to the wall by about 3 or 4 screws so they would not cause that much damage if we removed them, and it would be an easy job for whoever bought the house to undertake.

Surely it would be better to show the room as a fully kitted out study/office rather than a store room? Are we being awkward? or is it the builders?
They do seem to be taking the attitude that the house now belongs to them. They have already got shirty when I said we could not have people around to view the house on Tuesdays which is the day my husband works at home.

We haven't actually signed anything yet - and although we like the potential new house we are not in love with it, and we are in no real hurry to move - it all seems a bit odd to me, what do people think?

silvercar · 25 August 2006 at 4:35PM

As you are doing a part-ex, you have little choice but to sing to their tune. As the office is held by a few screws can't you move it and let them furnish the room as they please? You are going to have to pack up the office to move sooner or later. Builders have access to room dressers who can put shrunken furniture in place to make the room appear bigger.

rio · 25 August 2006 at 5:43PM

Point taken, but my husband will still need to work from home, so we would not pack the office up until the day before we moved. If his things are all in boxes then it will make his files less accessible and he would have to work in the lounge/diner with our three year old running around, hardly the best situation for him.

TallGirl · 25 August 2006 at 5:56PM

If you are not really keen to move into the new house why not wait and find one that really suits you. When we bought our new house of a developer they were offering part-exchange but the valuations were really low. Why not try to find a buyer yourself.